Largest Religion

Main Language

Progress

Introduction / History

Not many South Asian people are living in Portugal. Those looking for work or refugees seem to be coming in large numbers to this country. There were South Asians in the former Portuguese colonies of Goa as well as Daman and Diu and also some in Mozambique. After independence, many South Asians who were Portuguese citizens came to live in Portugal.

The Indians from Goa are largely Catholics. The Hindus are mainly from Mozambique. When Mozambique became independent, four to five thousand Hindus, mainly Gujaratis, left as they were worried about being persecuted. Many of them now live in the poor regions of Lisbon and are in low paid work. The Hindus have religious festivals and institutions.

Indians in Portugal are reckoned now to be about 70 thousand. In addition to Lisbon, they live in Porto, the Algarve, Coimbra, Leiria and Guarda. Punjabis have arrived recently.

A Hindu organisation called the Hindu Community of Portugal came into being in 1982. There is a Hindu temple in Lisbon called Templo Hindu.